Photo credit: WHO/Kiana Hayeri
Availability of data on the health workforce is essential to track capacity and dynamics and address health workforce challenges.
Health workforce data must be complete and of a high quality. Such data can help assess the suitability and effectiveness of health workforce policies and may be translated into effective health workforce policies and plans. The National Health Workforce Accounts provide guidance on how to progressively improve health workforce indicators and the gathering of data.
The Eastern Mediterranean Region Health Workforce Observatory is a multistakeholder mechanism set up by WHO to inform health workforce improvement and, in turn, health system strengthening. It both produces information and knowledge needed to improve policy decisions and enables the sharing of country experiences. It is also seen as a means to gather stakeholders and partners around a strong evidence base on the effective implementation and monitoring of health workforce policies.
The Health Workforce Observatory aims to:
strengthen information and evidence for the design, implementation and monitoring of national and regional health workforce policies, strategies and plans;
develop national capacities for the monitoring and evaluation of the health workforce situation and trends;
provide a forum for partnership and the sharing of information and evidence on health workforce; and
promote advocacy for health workforce development.